See Rock City

Saturday, February 11, 2017

Christmas
has come and gone, and some of us may not have gotten exactly what we
were wishing for. Many of us receive Christmas money from grandparents,
and other relatives, fueling our desires to get that one thing we really
wanted for Christmas, like this bicycle. This 1955 Huffy Radiobike is a
great survivor that is rare, and complete. The Radiobike was made for
1955 and 1956 making some very lucky kids the coolest kids on their
street, being able to have portable music built right into their
bicycle. Unfortunately, not long after the Radiobikes release, the
transistor radio came out making it very easy to take music with you
any, and everywhere. This rare two wheeled mercury vapor tube radio is
offered at $1,800. Find it here on ebay out of Ohio.

Within
this tank lies a narrow mercury vapor tube radio. There is a volume
knob, as well as a tuning knob, and the key is a locking on/off switch
to prevent others from draining your batteries when you aren’t with your
bike. The white tube coming out of the bottom of the tank is the
antenna. Wearing the lovely “Flamboyant Red” color, the Huffy Radiobike
was also offered in “Flamboyant Green” and “Flamboyant Blue”. Although
the Radiobike was offered for 2 years, it is speculated that there were
only 8,500 bikes made. 8,500 doesn’t sound like too low of a number, but
the Radio built into the tank was not cut out for the outdoors, and
many fell subject to failure. Upon out living their usefulness as a
radio with wheels, the transistor radio would become a quick
replacement, and the “Muscle” bikes of the 1960s didn’t do the
Radiobikes any favors, making them appear old and outdated.

Fortunately,
this radio looks to be in fair health, needing to be cleaned and
tested. Also fortunately the on/off switch key is with this bike as
well. This 3 tube radio was designed, and manufactured by Yellow Springs
Instrument Company.

In
nice survivor condition, there are areas where some surface rust has
developed. The radio side of the tank has some minor surface rust, but
much of the paint, and graphic on the tank is present. There is also
some surface rust forming on the chain guard as well as the rear fender.
The battery pack compartment is very clean. Thankfully someone removed
the batteries preventing corrosion to the battery area. The 1955 only
headlight is nice with no rust, or paint issues. The handle bars and
fork crown are beautifully shiny, although the wheels have not aged as
well. There is some corrosion, and even minor rust forming on the rims.
These wheels are likely suitable to ride, but they are just a bit ugly
as far as condition goes. But we aren’t too picky, we would gladly
welcome this 2 wheeled find to our collection. How about you?Source: barnfinds.com